


Nothing About

by toonamifan666



Category: RWBY
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Gen, Humor, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-28
Updated: 2018-04-29
Packaged: 2019-02-07 23:45:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 11,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12852087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/toonamifan666/pseuds/toonamifan666
Summary: Nothing About follows the everyday lives of RWBY, JNPR, and other inhabitants of Remnant outside of fighting. And also maybe some fighting. It is the world of RWBY after all. As the saying goes: Everything's a gun.





	1. Have You Heard About the Weather?

**Author's Note:**

> Ruby asks Weiss an important question.

"You know, the weather has been nice today."

Weiss scoffed. "Is that really what you want to talk about? The weather?"

Ruby looked affronted as she retorted, "Well I was trying to think of something else to say, but the only thing I could think of was about the weather."

Ruby and Weiss had decided earlier in the week that they would be taking this day to do something unrelated to school. So far that had amounted to walking around Vale.

“So that is why you decided to say it?”

“Yep!”

Weiss couldn’t help but smirk at Ruby enthusiasm. While she had a hard time dealing with her at the beginning it was hard to not come to like the scythe user. “I’m not surprised that you could not think of anything better than that. You’re too much of a dolt.”

“Weiss! That’s not nice!”

“I’m sorry but who got us lost? Who said she knew where she was going?”

Ruby turned away and grumbled, “I did.”

While she wanted to laugh at the look on Ruby’s face, Weiss instead walked over and put a hand on her shoulder. “But you’re right. So whenever we find our way back pick somewhere you want to go. I’ll pay.”

“What? No, you don’t have to that Weiss.”

“I want to.”

Ruby looked to be internally debating the issue for a few seconds before she said, “Fine. But you have to come with me.”

“Well of course. I am paying and I’m your partner.”

“Awesome!” Ruby shouted. “Now I really think I know where we need to go. That way!” She pointed in a direction off to the side of them.

“We already tried that way a couple of hours ago. That’s how we ended back here.”

Ruby threw her arms up. “Gah! This would be so much easier if Zwei were here.”

“I can’t believe Nora took him. What does she even want with him?”

“She said something about training. I know she was also trying to get Oobleck to help them out. I think she wants him to shoot Zwei at Jaune. Zwei enjoys flying so he would gladly go along with it. Especially if Oobleck was also going to be involved. They’re friends.”

Weiss looked surprised. “What?”

Ruby shrugged in response. “I don’t know it happened. All I know is that they enjoy drinking whatever that stuff is. They meet a couple of morning each week.”

“I think I’m starting to lose it from being lost so long,” Weiss vacantly stated. “We have got to get back to Beacon. Can’t you call Yang on your scroll?”

“Yeah, about that.” Ruby sheepishly toed the ground. “I, ah… l left it back at our room.”

“Great! Just great! Now what are we going to do?”

“Why don’t you use yours?”

A blush graced Weiss’ face as she softly said, “I left it in our room.”

Ruby, however, still heard her. Triumphantly cheerful she quickly retorted, “Now who's the ‘dolt’?”

“You still insisted you knew where you were going and got us lost.”

As Ruby tried to come up with a suitable response and failed, Weiss smirked as victory was hers.

And it was sweet.


	2. Wandering About in Tones of Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Zwei wanders about Vale.

Zwei was having what he considered to be a most wonderful day. After having waking up to pampering from Ruby and Weiss he then spent time with his friend Oobleck discussing the mysteries of the Grimm and their origins. Having spent the rest of the morning then assisting Nora in playing with Jaune, he was now just wandering around. Taking in the sights.

He thought of possibly seeing if he could find Ruby since she would most likely get lost when exploring Vale. She had a wonderful sense of direction when she knew the area. When she didn’t though, she couldn’t find anything. But Weiss was with her so it shouldn’t be a problem. Not only did the heiress give some of the most amazing scratches behind the ears, she also seemed to have a good head on her. She should be able to stop Ruby if she begins to get them lost. Hopefully before the got too lost.

His stroll through Vale wasn’t just for taking in the sights. He met with the shopkeeper at the dust store and placed an order for Team RWBY. The shop keep was like all times, a good fellow.

After that business was finished he proceeded down the sidewalk and away from the shop. As he was wondering where he should go next he noticed strange movement in an alleyway. Someone seemed to be leaving from a hole in a wall. That hole then just vanished. How strange.

Perhaps he should follow?


	3. Three F's Means Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Neo wants to stab someone.

It was the middle of the day. Why was she doing this? Why was she here?

Right now she didn’t have the time to be thinking about these questions. She had to keep focused.

She had to keep her eyes on the objective.

Failure was not an option. Not for  _ her _ .

There!

Now all she had to do was get out of here. The easiest part. All she had to do was put up an illusion for a bit and by the time anyone noticed, she would be long gone and on her way back to report her success.

All according to plan.

**XXXXX**

Now, that was a strange sight. Oh wait, he had already thought that.

Anywho, he was definitely going to follow whatever or whomever that was. Something about them seemed familiar. It wasn’t their personal scent or even their aura, it was another scent that lingered.

Hmmm…

Actually there were a few different scents attached to them. At least three.

No. Make that four.

How peculiar. Two seemed very familiar?

Why was that? And why could he not place those signatures?

Uh oh. The person was pulling away. Best to not let that happen.

**XXXXX**

_ Now where am I? _ This map was useless. Utter crap.

She was so going to stab Roman when she got back to base. The smug bastard deserved it. And Cinder wouldn’t even get too mad at her. She might even just reward her.

Oh yes, she was definitely going to stab him. Of course she would do it even without Cinder’s permission, but that just made it so much better.

Wait a moment. Was that someone following her? How could she let that happen?

Nevermind that. She has to take care of this.

Is that a dog?

**XXXXX**

Hmm. It appears as though the I’ve been caught. She’s good, whoever they are. I think I’ll see how this goes.

**XXXXX**

Oh, that’s not too bad. Still not great that the creature snuck up on her but not too bad.

It was very cute though.

And it just kept staring at her. Maybe she could keep it. She had always wanted a pet. There was enough space at their base and she was pretty sure Cinder would love the little thing. 

Plus Roman didn’t seem to care for animals. Of any kind really. This would probably piss him off to no end. Especially when he couldn’t do anything about it because Cinder wanted to keep the adorable little four-legged creature.

She was totally doing this.


	4. A Peaceful Body Brings Chaos to an Outside World

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ren meditates on a peaceful morning.

_ It’s quite peaceful this morning _ , Ren thought to himself.

It was rare that he got to enjoy a morning such as this. Usually Nora would be awake by now and in the middle of waking the rest of them up. Very loudly in most cases, but not every time. She knew when it was too much. She also knew that he would withhold pancakes from her if she went too far. She knew that very well.

Deciding to take advantage of the peace, Ren began to meditate. It was a practice that he didn’t get to indulge in all too often since starting at Beacon so he readily took the chance when an opportunity presented itself. 

It was about an hour later that Nora came to him. She had woken up shortly before and promptly decided to train Jaune. Noticing that Ren was meditating she quietly asked, “Do you want to help me train Jaune today? I have a really, really great idea!”

“Not today Nora. It’s been awhile since I’ve been able to really meditate for any length of time so I want to continue while I can for a bit longer.”

“You sure? I can wait if you want. Maybe you could help me make it better for him even though it’s already really great!”

“No, that’s fine. I have no doubt that whatever you have planned for Jaune will be great, but I think it will be better if I see how everything has gone after you’re done. Then we’ll see if anything can be improved to make his training better.”

Nora thought to herself for a few seconds. She then nodded and responded, “Yes, that’ll do. Do you need anything before I go?”

“Not that I can think of. Have fun.”

“Oh-hoho, I will.”

As she left and Ren returned to his meditation he quietly thought to himself,  _ I’m sure Jaune will be fine in the end. He should survive at least.  _ As he cleared his mind one more passing line crossed his stream of thought.  _ Then we will really begin his training. _


	5. Explosive Games With a Touch of Fire (and Lightning)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jaune has a terrible morning.

Jaune’s morning was miserable and turning deadly. Fast.

It was like watching a meteor falling from the sky hurtling towards you, all the while you knew there was nothing you could possibly do to protect yourself or prevent the untold amount of destruction. Very bad.

When he woke up he thought it would be a peaceful day. That quickly left his mind a few short seconds later when Nora shouted in his ear. “Come on Jaune, it’s time to wake up! You need to train and to start we need to improve your dodging!”

And so he training. Nora walked him through some basic warm up exercises and it was going good until she reminded him that they were going to work on his dodging skills. Everything started to go downhill after that.

First, she had Pyrrha launch her spear at him. It was difficult at first but he managed to get the hang of it fairly quick. He shouldn’t have done that.

Because of his supposed “inert skill”, Nora decided he was ready to move up to the advanced levels of the training. This is when Zwei and Professor Oobleck both joined. How she enlisted their help he had no clue but that wasn’t what was really going through his mind as he was running.

“No running away Jaune! It’s dodge and nothing else. If you run you’ll be punished!”

Or at least as he tried to run away from what he was certain was hell.

He could be forgiven for having thought that as the utter carnage that followed him really did to resemble what many have described hell to look like. The earth split in pursuit as fire rained down from above. Large chunks of dirt and rock hurled towards him as they burned. Dark clouds seemingly faded into existence and lightning stuck down, drawing closer with each passing second.

Jaune tried to dodge and for a bit he succeeded, but then he tripped. He caught himself before he hit the ground and looked up in time to see something incredible. Nora was in the air with her hammer poised to strike. Alongside of her was both a flaming Zwei and Professor Oobleck with his weapon also raised to strike him. A bolt of lightning was also just about to hit.

He saw his doom as it closed upon him. And then he saw nothing.

Nora and her assistants stood around the slumped body of Jaune. Zwei licked his face as Nora poked him the end of her weapon. Oobleck proceeded to check him over before declaring, “He’s fainted.”

Nora pouted. “Ahh! He was doing so good.” She paused and sighed, thinking about what this meant for Jaune. “That doesn’t matter though, not now. We’ll have to work and make sure that he doesn’t faint again.”

“Do you require any more assistance for today? Maybe taking him back to your dorm perhaps?”

“No, no. I got it.” With that, Oobleck and Zwei left and Nora picked up Jaune’s unconscious form, taking him back to their dorm. As she did she thought to herself, _I’ll have to go over this Ren. See what he’ll want to do with him. I wonder if Jaune will even be prepared for Ren’s training?_


	6. She Was Burning, She Was Burning, She Was Burning for Her

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a hot day in RWBY's dorm room.

“Hey Blake! Come here! I have something to show you.”

_ What could she want now? Can’t she see I’m doing something? _

“What is it Yang? Can’t you see I’m in the middle of something?”

“Please, you were just reading.”

“Yes, I was and I want to continue. So what is it that you want to show me this time. Is it any different from the last five times you’ve said wanted to show me something?”

“Why yes it is in fact. And it’s also the last thing I’ll show you. After this, I’ll leave you alone and not bug you until you say you are done with your reading. Okay?”

_ Should I? _

“Please?”

“Okay. Fine. So what do you want to sh- YANG! YOU’RE ON FIRE!”

“Yeah. I’m  _ burnin’ _ for you.”

“Can you put it out!?”

“Not while you’re near me. You make me to  _ hot _ .”

“Seriously!? This isn’t the time. Can you put it out?”

“...no.”

“Great! Just hold on!”

A few hot ticking seconds later Yang stood soaking wet as Blake returned with Glynda Goodwitch trailing behind her. A hose floated beside her.

Yang blinked before she began grinning. “Look Blake, you made me all  _ wet _ .”

While Blake blushed and turned away slightly, Goodwitch glared and snapped, “Detention Miss Xiao-Long for two weeks. I will not tolerate inappropriate behavior. Report to my classroom tonight”

Yang seemed ready to respond but seeing Goodwitch’s glare blaring down on her made her decide that staying quiet would be for the best. She turned and left with the hose following her, slamming the door behind her.  Yang just stared for a few moments at the closed door before she turned to Blake. With a wide smile she said, “All in all, I would say it was still all worth it.”


	7. Hey, Do You Have Any Change?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Weiss asks Ruby a dire question.  
> \----------------------------
> 
> Also, this chapter picks up right after the events of the first chapter.

The sweetness of her splendid victory did not have much of a lasting taste.

For hours they had continued to walk around in what was seeming to be a futile search for a possible escape from within the gripping confines of the inescapable maze that they had wandered into.

No matter which way they would go, they could not find a way out. Wherever it was that they were, there seem to be no one else out and about. 

Were they just missing them or was something more nefarious at play? Was some evil scientist kidnapping all of the innocent towns people to use them to power his machine that would allow to achieve complete domination over the entire world? The moon?!

“Weiss, maybe we should stop and rest for a bit.”

Weiss stared into Ruby’s soul. “And why should we do that, Ruby Rose?”

Ruby stepped in front of Weiss to halt her advancement. “Because you’re acting a little, well crazy.”

“I am not!” She was affronted by this baseless allegation.

“Weiss, you’ve been talking about how everyone might have been kidnapped by a evil scientist and narrating your actions. You’ve been saying stuff like how you were ‘staring into my soul’ and that ‘every step that you took was of an elegant stride that was sure to impress any that would look upon it’.”

With her elegant voice, Weiss questioned, “Have I really been doing that?”

“Yes. You just did it again.”

If Weiss was truly voicing these thoughts, then Ruby was right but she wouldn’t just outright state it. “Perhaps you’re right. I believe it would be wise to take a brief breather.”

Shaking her head at that exchange, Ruby led them to a bench that luckily was not at all too far away from where they were just talking. Weiss seemed to calm down after a good few minutes but Ruby had her suspicions that she could easily return back to narrating her every thought. That had been really enlightening.  _ I don’t think Weiss wanted me to know all of that. _

“Ruby?”

“Yeah?” _ Should I tell her? _

“We’re lost.”

“Yep.”  _ Later. _

“And neither one of us has our scrolls.”

“Nope."

“And no matter what we have done, we can’t seem to find a way out of this seemingly other dimension we have found ourselves trapped within.”

“Yep.”

A minute of silence lied around them like a dense fog before Weiss spoke up. “So, what are we going to do?”

“I don’t know.”

And once again the silence arose. Neither one knew how long they had sat there until they decided to walk around for a bit more. Still, as they traveled they could not find anyone else. Not even the smallest of Nevermore could be found trilling for their blood.

They had given up hope long ago.

Then they happened to stumble upon a most curious of contraptions.

Weiss stared at the strange device in confusion. “What is it?”

Ruby too gazed upon its strangeness and pondered. “Weiss, you’re doing it again.”

“Sorry.”

“No need but I was actually thinking.”

“About what?”

“I think I’ve heard of these before.”

“Really?” It wasn’t said to condescend but to express real curiosity.

She didn’t take it negatively and nodded in response of the question. “Yes. I can’t remember what they are called but I heard my uncle Qrow talking about them once a long time ago.”

“What do they do?”

“They make calls.”

“Really?” Ruby simply nodded in lieu of verbally answering once again. Weiss’ expression turned from one of confusion to one of wonderment. “So this is what they used before scrolls.”

“I guess.”

“So how do you use it?”

“You need to put change in it to be able to make a call.”

Weiss thought to herself while Ruby continued to inspect the machine. A few seconds later a sheepish look formed on her face as she asked, “Hey, do you have any change?”

Ruby turned and looked at her with a blank look. In a flat tone she told her, “Weiss, I’m broke.”

“Really?” she asked incredulously.

“Yep.”

“Nothing.”

“Not a thing.”

“Great.” She sighed as she said this. Did she sigh to much? It definitely felt like it. She never used to sigh this much at least she thought so. Maybe she had always been a chronic sigher.

“You’re doing it again.” Ruby pointed out for the thousandth time.

_ Dammit! _

“I didn’t know you cursed.”

_ Curses! _

Before she could continue the cycle Ruby quickly stated, “I have a question.”

Again sighing,  _ I should ask Winter about this _ , Weiss just asked, “What?”

“Don’t you, heiress to a huge company, have like unlimited money?”

“No, not unlimited but it is a substantial amount that I have to use.”

“So can’t you use those millions of lien here?”

“No, for two reasons.”

“Why? What are they?”

“Number one, it is all on my card and this machine doesn’t look like it takes cards. Am I right?”

Begrudgingly Ruby answered, “Yeah.”

Weiss smiled to herself for Ruby acknowledging that she was right. Then she grew sheepish again as she continued, “And secondly, I uh, left that back at the room as well.”

“So you have nothing either right now.”

“...yes.”

“Great.”

“Yep.”

Several moments of silence passed as they stared at each other. Well Ruby stared at Weiss as Weiss looked at everything around them, not meeting Ruby’s eyes. Calmly and flatly Ruby simply stated, “I blame you for everything today.”

“I blame you.”

“Fair enough.”

“Yeah. Same.” She didn’t sigh that time. Maybe she could work on that. She turned to Ruby.

She, without needing to be asked, told Weiss, “You didn’t do it that time.”

_ That’s good. _ With nothing left to do they sat back down on the bench they had found. Weiss thought that they should be planning on what to do but accepted the peace as they watched the sky begin to turn to night.  _ We’ll figure something out. Maybe we could get extra credit for this. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have liked what you've read thus far, Chapter 8 should be up on Tuesday the 24 of April.


	8. They Also Mean Pain (Indeed)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Neo still wants to stab someone.  
> \----------------------------  
> ________________________________  
> This chapter continues off from chapter 3. It's also a behemoth of a chapter for this story.

_ Finally, I’m just about there.  _

Yes, she was indeed almost back to the base of operations she and her compatriots worked out of.

_ I can’t wait to see what Cinder thinks. _

Of course she couldn’t wait to see Cinder’s reaction to her, gift. She was pretty sure that she knew exactly how Cinder would react and if it did indeed go such as she thought, then Roman would be very agitated. And even better than that, he would be unable to do a single thing about the whole thing.

Maybe she would even have the chance to carry through with her revenge.  _ Hopefully everything goes as planned. _

She was confident that it would.

_ If not, I’ll still stab him. He still needs to pay. _

It always paid to have a backup plan in the event of failure though.

_ And maybe Emerald as well. _

And a little something to cheer yourself up if the need arises.

_ But it won’t. _

No, it would not. Most assuredly.

Possibly.

In any case, she was close. As she approached the obscured entrance she thought on how odd it was for her little, companion, to have been so quiet for the duration of their trip.  _ I wonder why? Maybe someone trained him before. _ Was the fury traveler even male? She didn’t know.  _ I doubt it’ll matter to Cinder. _

_ And now for the moment of truth _ , she thought as she entered the dwelling. It wasn’t really though, not yet. She still had a ways to go before she reached the main room and even then Cinder might not be there. If she wasn’t there then who knew where she would be. Perhaps, maybe in her room?

Taking her heads out of the clouds and other various stratospheric thoughts she noticed that she had passed through the last security checkpoint. Well passed over it anyways but who really cared who went in what ventilation shafts or sewage tunnels. It wasn’t her fault that he never really did much to securely secure them. Whether it was an oversight or simply the more likely choice of negligence, it was practically glowing with a tri-colored sign inviting her to extort them.

Would it be right or would it be wrong to pick any other path that night? She liked to think that it would go against everything that she was.

And, maybe it would impress Cinder.

As her luck would not have it, Cinder was in the main meeting room or as her online friend and she liked to refer to it as, The Room of Plotting.  _ Damn it! _ Still, she could work with it. She told her companion to go back and wait for her as she got ready. At least now she knew the creature the creature’s gender.  _ Now it’s time to make an entrance. _

With a lunge she threw herself from the metal confines of the ventilation shaft. Soaring through the limited space she turned until she was upside down and spun her legs around in her descent. Narrowly she missed the face of her partner. Touching the ground she continued to spin for a few more rotations before using the momentum she had gained to propel herself to her feet. Seeing looks of amusement as well as glares she gave a slight bow to her audience.

Before anyone else had a chance to speak up Torchwick dramatically exclaimed, “Oh by the grace of the moon! Young Neopolitan! I’m so glad that you finally found your way back to us. I was afraid that you might have gotten lost.”

With his words her anger started to fester. She knew he was patronizing her and gloating at the fact that his ruse was successful even if it did seem to have not been for as long as he might have wanted. Inwardly she was beginning to form plans to rectify his attitude.  _ He’s definitely going to pay. _

Whether he felt her glare or not he continued his dramatic performance. “Oh I was getting so worried for your safety! The thought that you might be lost out there all alone was churning my Squeedlyspooch something fierce. I thought we might have to get a map from the great Grimms above just to find you.” He topped it off with clenching his fist and holding high above himself as if to point the stars and anything that might reside there. And to be dramatic.

Neo’s eyes narrowed as she continued to glare disdainfully at Torchwick.  _ I’ll enjoy wiping that smug look from his face, _ she thought to herself as she snarled at him _. Maybe I should cut it off. _ Would she have peace then? She doubted it. He was too much of an asshole to let that stop him.

But before either of them could continue Cinder spoke up. “Roman, if you do not stop then you will find out just how replaceable you are compared to her.” 

The combined words and sight of Cinder smiling as she said this and Torchwick’s annoyed huff made Neo feel happy. She also felt proud because with this it meant that she had won this round herself and not her partner.

Seeing Roman stopped for now Cinder turned to Neo. Calmly she asked, “Were you successful in your task?” Neo’s nod of acknowledgement had Cinder extend her arm retrieve the package.

Emerald, having been wondering about the assignment, asked, “What is it exactly that you had her retrieve? Why couldn’t I have been sent to get it?”

Cinder’s tone turned cold as she addressed Emerald. “You should know by now to not be questioning me about what I have ordered.” She turned until she stared Emerald right in the eyes. “Do I need to remind you of your place.”

Emerald, taken aback, stammered, “I-I apologize. I didn’t mean to overstep my bounds and question your authority.” She lowered her head.

“Good.”

As Emerald turned away somberly Neo smirked. Was she happy because Emerald had been put in her place? Yes, yes she was.

Cinder turned back to the item she was holding. “To answer your question, I cannot reveal what it is for even I myself do not know what the contents of the package are.” Just as she was about to turn and walk away Neo singled for her attention. “Yes?” Neo motioned to give her a moment.

“I wonder what’s with her.” Torchwick seemed to have recovered enough finally.  _ Great, _ Cinder thought,  _ just what I need right now. Why can’t he just be quiet for more than a minute or two? Or not  _ _ antagonize _ _ every single person or thing he ever meets? If he wasn’t so useful sometimes, I think I would kill him.  _ This is not the first time she has thought of this.  _ Probably wouldn’t work with his luck though. _ Yet this is the same outcome she comes to each time.

Before she was able to order him to be silent Neo had returned. With her she carried something behind her back. Though Cinder could not see it Torchwick must have been able to as his eyes narrowed at whatever it was.

“Why do you have that,  _ thing _ ?”

_ This must be good if it has him so upset. _

“Get rid of it. Now!”

Seeing him get more and more worked up at whatever it was, Cinder stepped in and with a humorous tint to her voice commanded, “Now Roman, I’m sure whatever it is that she has brought is worth taking a look at. She’s never disappointed me before and I can't see her starting now.”

Neo imagined that last part as being said with a purr.

“No! It needs to be taken out of here right now. And do you honestly think she is doing this for you? She brought that damn thing here to screw with me! She knows I hate the detestable things and so she brought it here! Because of me!”

“Do you really believe that?”

Torchwick without a shadow of a doubt firmly answered, “Yes!”

Deciding to humor the quite startled man she calmly and with patronizing tone directed at Torchwick asked the tri-colored thief, “Did you bring, whatever it is you’re still hiding behind your back, to quote unquote ‘screw’ with him?” Neo negatively shook her head in response. Turning back to face the seething man Cinder stated, “See? She hasn’t done it to mess with you. I actually believe it is a gift for me.” She glanced to Neo to confirm her suspicions.

Roman was livid at this exchange. “She lying! Didn’t you see her smirk?” Just as he was about to continue an epiphany came to him. “Unless you did see it.” Yes the gears were turning now. “You’re in on it. Together! Are the rest of you in on this as well?! Emerald?”

Emerald just shook her head at the entire situation. “I have no clue what is even going on right now. Why are you freaking out so much?”

He ignored her question as he continued, “And you Mercury? I thought we had bonded. I looked at you like a son whom I hated.” Torchwick finally did stop for a moment as he noticed that he couldn't see Mercury. “Where is Mercury? Wasn’t he just here?”

It was Emerald that finally spoke up after no one in the room said anything for a few ticks. Shrugging she said, “He left when Neo first popped out of the air vent.”

He was befuddled at this news. “Huh. I could have sworn that I saw him here this whole time.” Instantly he seemed to get have regained the rage that was once fueling him. “It doesn't even matter. If he was here I know the bastard would have been in on it. He reminds me of myself sometimes and that's exactly what I would have done if I were in his place.”

“You need to calm down.” Cinder tried to cut him off and get him to cease, in her opinion, his foolish behavior. “You will be of no use to us if you're going to be continue like this.” She was sure her boss would agree with her assessment on this matter. Maybe.

“I’ll calm down when that  _ thing _ is taken out of my sight and my base!”

Cinder’s eyes narrowed. “Do not forget your place, Roman.” She moved and gestured slightly as she spoke to him; her voice lowered with a dangerous edge. “While I may let you have some degree of control for this base and its ongoings, I am still the one who is in complete control.  _ You _ follow  _ my _ orders.  _ You _ do as  _ I _ say.  _ This _ base  _ is min _ e.  _ You _ , are _ mine _ . If I decide you are doing an unsatisfactory job, then I will dispose of you. Do not forget that I am much more powerful and much more dangerous than you.” She stepped closer to Torchwick. “If I say that it is staying here, then it is staying here. Do you understand?” Her eyes glowed with a simmering orange glow as she talked.

Roman sensed the turn of the atmosphere and shrunk away slightly. “Fine.” He took a moment to compose himself, trying to maintain some sort of dignity that he had left. “I guess I’ll be going out for a bit. If you need me, well don’t.” And with that he left. Presumably to leave the base if he followed through with what he said.

Slightly stunned Emerald asked, “Should we be worried about what he might do?”

“No. He knows what would happen if he betrayed us, but just in case I’ll have him watched. I’m sure I know where he is going.” Cinder turned to face Neo. “Now since that's done, what is it you brought me?”

Gently but with flair, Neo pulled the item from behind her back and presented it. It wasn’t Emerald’s muttered and sarcastic response though that made her smile widely as she did- it was Cinder’s jubilant reply.

“Oh my Grimm! He’s so cute!”

Yes, it was exactly how she thought it would be.

Cinder for the moment, despite her excitement, held herself back from approaching closer and asked, “He is a he, right?”

Neo nodded in affirmation to the request.

“Can I hold him?” she asked with a more subdued voice than before.

Once again Neo nodded.

“I love him!” Cinder slightly shouted this as she gently grasped the dog from Neo’s hands.

Neo knew she would.

Cinder played with the small quadruped for a minute before she spoke again. “Thank you, Neo. So, so much. I don’t know how to repay you for everything.” Neo shrugged at the praise. “No, you deserve it. Give me a few days and I will have your reward.” She inclined her head and started to smile before dropping it when Emerald cut in.

“Why does she deserve a reward? She didn’t do anything!”

“Emerald, remember my earlier warning.” Cinder was not thrilled at Emerald’s interruption. Gone was the excitement, the warmth from her voice. Now in its place was a cold, threatening tone.

She either didn’t notice or didn’t care as she continued, “No! I want to know why she always gets special treatment no matter what she does! She never gets punished as harshly as everyone else does when she fails and no one else around here gets anything extra for completing our jobs. Look at this moment right now!” Her voice continued to climb as she spoke.

“You’re going on like this is some big deal. Well what did she really do? She completed a simple assignment that I’m not even sure she should have been sent out on, and delivered a package. That’s it! Oh and let’s not forget, she brought a damn dog back. Do you even know where it came from or if it has anyone who might come looking for it?”

“I-” Cinder started to say before she was cut off. As Emerald spoke her expression morphed into one that was crestfallen.

“No you don’t but you know what, I do,” she said frantically. “That mutt belongs to a student at Beacon, one you yourself classified as high risk. Do you know which one? Ruby Rose. That dog belongs to her and her sister and they will come looking for him, I know they will. You sent us to infiltrate and get close enough to determine risk factors of several targets and I have. Mercury may shirk his duties most of the time but I don't. I know what I am talking about because I know them well enough to judge how they would respond to a situation.”

Her demeanor shifted as she talked. “They would respond as a team with the other two and even then it wouldn't be just them. They would manage, with no real effort, to get others involved. We know of some of the people close to them and that includes several other high profile targets that we have determined to be high risk, ones that you yourself declared. I know I don’t know everything that's planned but I know enough to reasonably say that we can’t have that kind of heat on us. I still say that it's bad enough that Torchwick is so widely known but I understand that was a calculated risk. This however wouldn’t be and we can’t afford to have anyone else be as publicized.”

Even Neo could see the reasoning in Emerald's argument. Regretfully, she could even agree with it. She wasn't happy about that.

“If you keep this dog it will only cause us problems.” Emerald's voice had calmed finally, lowering in its intensity. “Our covers could be compromised or they could discover our base. Knowing who they are connected to and who they could have helping them, can we really risk this? Are you really willing to risk everything that we, and more importantly that you, have been working towards on this?”

Cinder begrudgingly let out a simple and shameful tinged, “No.”

“Then let me take Zwei back with me to Beacon. It’s getting late enough that I should start heading back.”

Cinder stared at Zwei with a look of longing and what might possibly be construed as a very slight indeed pout. “His name is Zwei?”

“Yes.”

“That's adorable.” Cinder sighed as she softly spoke.

Emerald as well sighed as she responded, “I know.” It took her a few moments as she watched Cinder continue to play slightly to speak again. “I’m sorry for speaking out. I’ll take whatever the punishment is that you decide for me.” Emerald bowed her head submissively as she awaited Cinder’s verdict.

She gave a small chuckle. “Not to worry, it won’t be anything too bad. You’re right about not keeping him. With any luck we would have had Branwen joining them or at least aiding them. We’re not equipped or ready for that. Thank you for helping me to understand that.”

Emerald wanted to ask about the other point she talked about but knew that this was not the time to bring it up. Even when she said it just a bit ago it wasn’t the time. With nothing left to say or wanting to worsen her situation, she stood there silently staring down towards the floor and waited for Cinder to dismiss her.

She didn’t have to wait much further thankfully as Cinder soon walked up to her. Gently, she placed Zwei into her arms. Once she did she placed a finger underneath her chin and pulled it upward so that she would meet her eyes. “However, you will do well to remember how much worse it could be. It is because only Neo and you were here that I am letting you get away so lightly. If you ever question me like that again in front of others, you will be much worse off. You are not nearly as irreplaceable as you believe.”

Her eyes and tip of her finger glowed faintly as she finished. Emerald wanted to flinch at the pain but bit back any response, knowing that this was Cinder being merciful. With her power she could make her feel much more pain, more than she could have possibly ever felt in her life. Enough to make her wish and maybe even beg for death.

Cinder finally stopped, leaving behind a patch of scorched skin a example of her work. Sparing no additional glance to her underling, she motioned to Neo and both left the room. Neo however did glance behind her as they did and let a smug smile be the last Emerald saw of them.

Though still wanting to express some semblance of the pain she felt, Emerald held herself from doing it as she began to make her way out of the base.  _ No! I will not let this get to me. I will not let it show. _ For some reason she looked at Zwei as they walked through a hallway. He radiated a presence that invited her to stand down, to not close herself so tightly.

She hated it.

_ I’m done with that, _ she reminded herself. _ Don't make that mistake. Never again. _

It took Zwei and her over a hour to make it back to anything resembling civilization. Even then it was only the forgotten ruins of a city, though they were in surprisingly good condition. One could mistake them for an in use city that had no one walking around in it without the proper background knowledge or context.

The two drifted along for about another hour. “I’m kind of surprised _ ,” _ Emerald told Zwei. He stared up at her curiously as she continued, “I would have thought that there would be someone here. Some kind of lowlife maybe or even a runaway Faunus but no, there’s no one. I haven't even seen a single Grimm. Usually you would at least see like a baby Nevermore but I haven't even seen that. Don’t you think that's weird?”

Emerald felt strange asking Zwei, a dog, that question and even just talking to him. She usually had no problem dealing with long stretches of silence but for some reason she felt awkward this time. Maybe it had to do with the events of earlier. Zwei nodding at her question, at least that’s what it looked like to her, helped lessen that feeling.

Just as she was about to say more a noise some distance away drew their attention. Slowly they made their way to the location they believed the sound to be coming from. As the moved closer they were able to identify that it was voices. She motioned for Zwei to remain silent as she snuck up to whomever it was that was speaking. 

_ What are they doing here? _ She was confusedly surprised to find out whom it was that they had heard talking.

“Uh, Ruby? Weiss? Why are you two out here?” Even Zwei seemed slightly surprised to find the two where they were. For a minute there was silence between the all. No one moved and it was as if the air and wind itself had died. Just as Emerald was about to ask them again Weiss spoke up.

“Why?” she whispered. “Do you know where we are? Do you even know where is here?”

Emerald was startled at her tone. Weiss spoke as one who had accepted the futility of their situation and awaited the condemnation that would be bestowed upon her. With a slight stutter she asked, “Are, you okay?” Truthfully, she was kind of afraid of what the answer would be. She had never seen the heiress act like this.

“How could I not okay?” Weiss stood up from the bench she and Ruby had found. “It’s as if the deities themselves have answered my prayers! Time has lost all meaning and definition! My refusal of the acceptance of its existence has led to its ceasing of function. With my triumph I have proven my existence. I have found that I am! But this cannot be true. If I have defeated a shard of existence, then this existence is not real. If this is not real then I am not real. I reject this sentience of the singularity of existing. If I am not then everything is as well. Nothing matters. Everything we do, everything we believe to drive us, is a lie. Everything and nothing is predetermined as we are all but microscopic, insignificant playthings created by the godhead! In my rejection I have found freedom. In embracing the truth I have found shackles. I have achieved the journey and ascended! I exist in all dimensions and no where in time.” With a flourish she summoned a tiny nevermore that appeared still and lifeless. She threw it to the ground in front of Emerald and declared, “I have now taken over the world!”

She had no clue on how to deal with this. Turning to Ruby, hopefully sane she prayed, she asked, “What’s going-”

“Don’t put too much into what she's saying.” Ruby appeared nonchalant as she answered. Since Zwei and Emerald had arrived she had been slumped on the bench. One arm helped to support her head that hung over the top and the other one lied limp at her side. “She hasn’t been taking today so great.”

“What?” She was befuddled.

“Yeah, we’ve been pretty much lost since this morning. She hadn’t taken that very well and we haven’t really had much to eat or drink. I don't think that has helped things. See she wasn’t this bad earlier. Just saying everything she was thinking. It was only about an hour or so ago that she started this.” Ruby shrugged her shoulders at the last part. It was hard to tell how long it had been exactly.

She thought for a moment about what Ruby had told her. “... Okay.”  _ I guess that could make sense. _ Trying to get the conversation back to a somewhat sane train of thought she asked, “Well, uh, what are you doing out all the way out here? How did you get lost?”

Ruby sighed before she began. “It started off with us just wanting to hang out and explore Vale. So we went to Vale. Then we got lost. We couldn't find anybody and then Weiss started getting like this so we decided to take a break. We realized we had both left our scrolls at Beacon and that neither one of us had any lien. So we looked around a bit more and decided after a few hours to rest. Then you showed up and now we’re here.”

“That’s all?”

“Yep.”

“Did you know that you aren’t in Vale?”

“Nope, but it doesn’t surprise me. I thought I recognized nothing.”

Emerald let out a weak chuckle. “Right…so do you want to follow me out of here? I happen know my way around.”

“If it's not a problem, sure.”

“Nope. No problem at all. I was on my way back to Beacon myself. That’s why Zwei is with me. I found him near here actually. Was he with you two at some point?” She had been wondering about that since Neo brought him? How did she get him?

“I was wondering why he was with you. And no, he wasn't with us today. I mean we saw him this morning before we left so it's not like we haven't seen him for awhile. Well actually, it has kind of been a while because we’ve been gone for most of the day but really that's not that long. So have we not seen him for a long time? It’s kind of like a yes or no question but they both apply for the answer. You know what I mean? I’m not sure I really do.”

“Yeah, I get it.”

Ruby nodded as she said, “That's good. At least one of us does but I don't know why he was all the way out here. Maybe he was trying to find us? I’ll have to ask Yang. She was supposed to be watching him.” She paused for breath before she turned to Emerald. “Thanks for finding him though. That would have just been great, wouldn’t it? Finally get back and then find out that they lost Zwei! That wouldn’t have been good.”

Thinking back to earlier Emerald replied, “Yeah. I can imagine it wouldn’t be. For anyone I bet.”

A shrug was shrugged in response. “You’re probably right.” She stood up and look around as she brushed off her clothes. “Anyways, we should get moving right?”

“Yeah. We’ve lost a lot of the light already and we still got a ways to go. Can you grab Weiss?” She motioned to the heiress who at that moment was regaling Zwei with tales of a fantastical world filled with gods, foxes and cats that practiced necromancy. “I don’t think she’ll listen to me and to be honest, she's kinda freaking me out.”

“Yep.” Ruby's voice spoke of acceptance.

The mysterious Emerald turned to the hooded one. “So that's what you meant when you said she started narrating.” And thus she spoke.

“Yeah. C’mon Weiss. We're going home.” But was it in a tree? She may never know.

And so they finally left after making sure each member of their party was following. By going along a slightly longer path to avoid most possibilities of trouble, the would hopefully reach Beacon within a couple of hours.

As long as nothing happened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 9 should be up on Thursday.


	9. Wandering Neither Way of Light or Darkness, Maybe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pyrrha’s day of contemplation and relaxation.  
> ____________________________________________  
> \--------------------------------------  
> This one and the previous chapter took the longest to write. Chapter 10 should be up on Sunday. I hope you enjoy.

_ I hope Nora doesn’t go overboard with her training. _

Since helping out with Jaune’s training that morning, she had been wandering around Beacon aimlessly. It was rare that she had such a stretch of free time with no commitments looming ahead of her to influence the activities that she would or even could pick. In fact situations like this, ones she was unused to and unsure how to handle, had been popping up and presenting themselves to her ever since she came to Beacon Academy.

Sometimes she did not know how to deal with it.

Everything was usually planned and there were so many limitations that she wasn’t able to really go crazy or do anything that would interfere with her work. At Beacon she didn’t have such rigid restrictions. Here she was just another student, even though not everyone saw or treated her like that. Still, with this new found freedom, the possibilities were endless!

And she had no idea whatsoever on what to do.

Usually there was someone around that she could spend time with. Mostly she would go along with whatever was suggested but there was the rare time she would have her own suggestion. Today however, everyone else had something they were preoccupied with.

Nora was training Jaune and had asked if she wanted to participate. She helped out a bit but decided to bow out shortly after when she found she couldn't put forth the effort that she felt both of them deserved. Ren was doing something that according to Nora required seclusion. She had been quite insistent on that point so Pyrrha decided to heed her warning and not disturb their quiet teammate. With team RWBY, Ruby and Weiss were taking the day to explore Vale and had left early in the morning. Yang and Blake were trying to get caught up on studying so she thought she would let them concentrate on that instead of tying them up with her own selfish needs.

So here she was. Wandering around with no direction. Going wherever her feet took her.  _ Maybe I should have took them up on their offer this morning.  _ Almost as soon as that thought had finished she shook her head.  _ No, no. I made the right decision. It will be good for them to just spend time together and develop a better bond. They don’t need anything interfering with that. _

Is was a nice day out so it hadn't been too bad just walking around but she still had the same question that had been on her mind for most of the day: What should she do? So many possibilities and she couldn’t decide what to do.  _ Should I just go back to the room? I feel like all I’m wasting time out here. At least back there I might get some sort of activity done or complete something! Maybe I missed an assignment. _ She didn’t though and she knew that.

Unimpressed with her self-convincing attempt she sighed to herself. Quickly giving the area a once over again she saw an unoccupied spot enveloped in shade and made her way over to take a seat. She spent the next few minutes just taking in the environment around her, trying to clear her mind. Trying to come to peace.

_ Am I wasting my time here? Were they right?  _ Again she sighed and continued her staring at nothing in particular.

“Are you alright, Miss Nekos?”

The sudden voice coming from out of her range of sight, regardless of the words spoken, gave her a startle. Tensing, she grabbed for her weapon and stabbed at her attacker. Her weapon failed to reach its mark as it was stopped mid thrust. Quickly, she swung her shield upward to protect herself from the oncoming attack. This again failed in its intention as she suddenly found herself hoisted slightly in the air and pushed back against a wall. She struggled against whatever it was that held her in place but it was futile. Try as she might she could not dislodge herself from her predicament.

“Calm yourself child. I am not an enemy.”

The haze that she hadn’t even realized enveloped her cleared, freeing her battle focused mind of its planning, allowing her to process who it was that she took to be an assailant. For the most part, she was mortified at whom it was. Another part though, one she didn’t want to really acknowledge the size of, wished she didn't know. That she would have continued.

“Now, are you going to try to attack me again?”

That part deep within urged her to respond to the condescending remark. “No, Miss Goodwitch,” Pyrrha shakily replied. “I don’t think I will.”

“Good,” Glynda replied as she lowered Pyrrha slowly to the ground. “I would have been upset with myself if I had been forced to send you to the infirmary.”

Pyrrha was glad to be back on the ground after her short trip. Though not highly suspended, it was disconcerting to be off the ground and within the air under someone else's authority.  _ I’m glad I didn’t end up sending you there, or worse. _ She took a moment to compose herself before she faced Glynda again. “I’m so sorry for trying to attack you Miss Goodwitch. I don’t know what came over me.”  _ Liar. _

Glynda motioned for Pyrrha to join her as she sat down. “It’s fine. Neither of us are hurt. While it’s something you’re not quite familiar with, I am. It's something that is not that hard to figure out once you have more experience. You, Miss Nekos, are a warrior. More so than most of your classmates which is why I am not surprised you haven't had much exposure to this kind of event. That mentality, that way of being, is simply natural to you. It is such a part of you that it is practically second nature for you, almost an involuntary response in a way. You are still training so you haven't yet refined it. Honed it.”

Pyrrha frowned at her teacher's words. “I’m afraid I don’t fully understand what you're talking about.”

Glynda gave her a slight smile. “I know. You will come to though the more you learn and with the more you experience. If that still doesn’t help you understand then I’ll try to explain it better.” Seeing no complaint raised, she continued. “You see, it’s something you usually find in experienced Hunters or those that have experienced battle many times. A honed battle sense that has been cultivated, that allows you to be a better fighter in a way. Some ways this manifests is through better reflexes, such is your case here. While you were caught off guard by my arrival you responded very quickly with a drive to subdue what your more battle leaned mind thought to be an enemy. This is something that with time and experience will become more defined, more able to sense between someone with more hostile intent and someone who is an ally.”

Pyrrha thought on what her teacher had said. “I see, I think.”

Glynda just smiled at her responded, “Don’t worry. Like I said, even though you don’t understand right now, you will come to.” 

“Yes.”

Something about her response didn’t sit well with Glynda. After a pause she told Pyrrha, “You still haven’t answered my earlier question.”

“I-I didn’t?” She tried to act surprised but her quick glance to the teacher let her know that she failed. Instead of waiting for a response she said, “No, I know I didn’t.”  _ So your first response is to lie? _ “I was trying to avoid answering it. Trying to avoid thinking of it.”  _ You just reinforce what I’ve told you. _

“What are you trying to avoid?”

“That all I really know is fighting. About how much I enjoy it.”  _ Liar. You love it. _

“There is nothing wrong with either of those points I hope you know.”

“Sometimes I like to think I believe that but other times, I can’t help but think there should be more I enjoy doing. My life is all about fighting and I wonder if it shouldn't. I look around and observe others around me and they have more to them. Shouldn't I have something more? Is there something wrong with me?”  _ You crave it. _

“There is nothing wrong with you. Even if fighting dominated your life as much as you believe it too, there is nothing wrong with you. Besides, you have your friends. Doesn't that show that you that there is more than just fighting?”

Pyrrha let out a half-hearted chuckle. “They're friends that I have made at an academy dedicated to combat.”  _ Remember the feeling? _

“Touché,’ Glynda conceited.

Pyrrha's smile wasn't completely happy as she continued, “See?” She sighed. “This is just another thing that leads me to asking myself, am I just friends because they are all fighters in their own right? They could all become exceptional warriors in the future.”

“I’m not sure I agree with you when you say all of them.”

“You're talking about Jaune, yes?” Goodwitch's look told her as much. “Well I believe that he has vast pool of potential that he just hasn't tapped into yet.” _ Don’t you want to experience it again? _

Glynda may have made a sound those that are uninformed may have mistakenly identified as a snort. They would be wrong though. Yes they would. “You are not the only one who believes that. I have yet to see that for myself.”

This time her smile was brighter. “I’m trying to help him to that point. I’m sure that one day, you’ll see it.”  _ That high? _

“Maybe,” Glynda smiled. “Do not speak a word of this to anyone else, but I hope to be proven wrong. Not because of what he can do, but because you achieved what you set out too.” She paused. “To get back to the original point l, don’t you also help your other friends? In matters not just of fighting?”

Pyrrha considered her words. “...yes, I have. How did you know?”

“It may not seem like it but we do try to monitor the students. Sometimes we are successful.” After saying this Glynda turned to stare Pyrrha in the eyes. “Do you see? Even if there is a connection to fighting, you still have friends and are helping them in your own way. If you were as obsessed with fighting like you think your are, you might want to help anyone. Especially if it wasn't somehow connected to fighting.”

Both went still once she had finished. Pyrrha seemed to be thinking things over and Goodwitch was being mindful to give her space. Moments, maybe minutes, passed before Pyrrha spoke again. “I’m sorry but I’m still having trouble accepting what you’ve been telling me, though I’ll admit that I see the logic behind them, I still feel like they don’t fully apply to me.”

“That’s fine. Somethings take time and even then you might find that it doesn’t apply to you. But in considering the possibilities and differences in yourself, you will be able to fully understand yourself. It’s important to give yourself time to come to these realizations. Don’t rush it. I’ve seen people do so before and they have regretted that. Sometimes it’s instantaneous and other times it has been later in life.” As she said this Pyrrha’s face grew inquisitive. To head this off before it had a chance to fester she said, “No, I won’t tell you who I refer to. That is something you do not need to know.”

“Sorry,” Pyrrha sheepishly responded.

“It’s fine. Just take my suggestions into consideration. I would be highly upset if I let you fall into that.”

“I promise to try.”  _ Do you really? _

Goodwitch smiled lightly. “That’s the best we can hope for sometimes.” Finally she stood up. “Well, if you won’t be needing anything else, I’ll be going. Good luck, Miss Nekos.”

Pyrrha nodded and also took to standing. “Thank you, Miss Goodwitch.”

As chance would have it they both ended up walking in the same direction for the most part until splitting up in the hallways of the dorms. Pyrrha was making her way back towards JNPR’s room when suddenly Blake went running by, seemingly unnoticing her. Seconds later Blake once more ran past her, this time joined by Glynda. Also, a hose. Perplexed by the odd sight she decided to see what was going on. Or maybe it was because her dwelling was right next across from RWBY’s and it wouldn’t take really any time out of her exhaustingly boring day.

Nearing the now busy intersection she overhead Yang saying, “Look Blake, you made me all  _ wet _ .” You could practically feel the innuendo dripping from the comment. Like a slap.

Glynda’s tone was biting and dared the punstress to retort. “Detention Miss Xiao-Long for two weeks. I will not tolerate inappropriate behavior. Report to my classroom tonight.” Though she couldn’t see it, she could almost feel Goodwitch’s glare from where she was a bit further down the corridor.

Seconds later the door to RWBY’s accommodations slammed shut. As she passed her, levitating hose in tow, she simply grated out, “Good evening, Miss Nekos.”

After taking a moment to process the events that had just transpired, she went back to her now short journey. Standing outside the room she wanted to just enter, she felt a nagging urge to check in on her comrades. This conflict raged within her until a victor was chosen.  _ I feel like I’m to nice sometimes. _

Slowly making the very short cross from her doorway to the other, she knocked politely. Blake was the one to open the door, enough that she was able to see into the room. “Pyrrha? Do you need anything?” It wasn’t too damaged but there was soot and burn marks at one spot in the room. One could safely assume it was related to fire, whatever had happened. Curiously, Yang was soaking wet. Why?

“I just wanted to check in on you after I saw Miss Goodwitch.”  _ She was really mad. I wonder what happened to make like that.  _ “Is, uh, is everything alright? Do you need anything?”

Blake sharply glared at Yang cutting off what sounded to be affirmation to her request. Not taking her eyes off her partner she told Pyrrha, “No, we’re alright. It’s was just a little issue with some fire.”

Her eyes widened at the news, though it was along the lines of what she was thinking it could be. “Are you sure you don’t need anything? Maybe some extra towels? Or cleaning supplies perhaps?”

Blake seemed to be ready to respond similarly to what she had already said but then she sighed and her face softened partly. “We could use the extra towels, please.”

Pyrrha nodded and quickly went and retrieved them. Blake mumbled her thanks, the sentiment echoed by Yang, as she took them and shut the door. Staring a tad blankly at the closed door she thought to herself,  _ I think I’m just going to rest for the remainder of the day. That’ll be good. _

_ Sure. It’ll give you time to think about everything. We’ve got a lot to do. _


	10. It's the End!...of the Day!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's the end!

It was late at night in JNPR’s room when they began to settle down for the night. Jaune wasn't with them as he was still in the care of Beacon’s medical facility. If everything continued to be good for him he was on track to be released late in the following day. Of course with his luck this was doubtful. Maybe the day after then.

“Are you sure we should start with that? I mean he was doing okay with some of his dodging but to that extent? Come on! He couldn't even dodged the combined attack I threw at him. All he had to do was roll backwards! And, well, maybe he could of gone sideways too. Actually, now that I’m thinking about it a bit more, he really could have done a lot.”

“Yes, he could have. But he didn’t. That is why we will be starting with this.”

Sigh. “If you’re sure.”

Nod. “I am.”

“Fine!” Huff. “I guess I’ll go tell him.”

“No. He is supposed to be resting. He can find out when he begins.”

“Ooo. That sounds like fun!”

“I knew you would think so.”

“Is everything all right?” Pyrrha asked finally. She had been vaguely watching the exchange between her two teammates and she wanted to make sure. She was also pretty sure they were talking about Jaune.

Nora was the first to respond to her inquiry. “Pfft, yeah. We're just planning Jaune's training.”

It was as she thought. “His dodging still, right? I had heard that he was in recovery but they wouldn't let me see him.” She was also sure she knew why they wouldn't.

This time it was Ren that confirmed her suspicions. “That's probably because he was asleep. It wasn't so much the damage that harmed him so much as it was the shock of what he saw.”

“Yeah,” Nora said. “After our combined attack he just kind of stopped. When they got him he kept mumbling something about seeing hell.” She threw her shoulders up in a shrugging motion. “I don't why he would say that, it’s not like Ren was there.”

Ren took his time to Pat her on a shoulder as he told her, “You don't give yourself enough credit. You are very frightening on your own.”

“Aw, thanks Ren!” She threw her arms around him, pulling him into a big hug. Those lest astute would not have seen his smile in response. Pyrrha though knew her teammates enough to notice. Nora finished with her hug and turned her attention to Pyrrha. “So, you hear what happened with Yang?”

Pyrrha turned away, hoping to not be caught staring. “Oh, um, yes I did. I had actually just left from walking with Miss Goodwitch when Blake came and got her.” She wasn’t about to forget the look Goodwitch had on her face when she passed by.

“I bet she was like super mad.” Nora’s voice was full of mirth as she spoke.

_She probably wouldn’t find it as funny had she been there. Or, maybe not._ _She would probably still be laughing._ “She definitely seemed to be when she passed me and also when she spoke to them.” Pyrrha went about continuing her preparation for bed.

Nora continued her questioning. “Can you believe Yang did that?”

“A bit,” Ren responded. Pyrrha nodded in agreement. “I remember hearing her mention something offhandedly about incorporating visuals into her puns.” Suddenly Ren’s scroll lit up. Excusing himself from the conversation, he left the room to answer the call that was coming in.

Nora sat on her bed, rocking back and forth slightly as she hummed. After a minute she asked, “So where’s Blake?”

“She is with Yang in her detention I believe,” Pyrrha told her.

“I thought she wasn’t being punished for it?”

Pyrrha shook her head. “She isn’t. She just wanted to be there with her for the first night. I think she wanted to help Miss Goodwitch.” Nora made a sound of understanding and went back to passing the time.

A few more minutes passed before Ren returned. He sat on his bed before he turned to both of his teammates. “That was Ruby.”

“Is everything alright,” Pyrrha asked. “I thought her and Weiss would have been back by now.”

Ren sighed before speaking. “Apparently they got lost while looking around today.” It took both of the questioning stares from Pyrrha and Nora to make him continue. “They’re on their way back now after Emerald and Zwei found them. The reason they didn’t call earlier is because both of them left their scrolls in their room and neither one could had anything to use a pay phone.”

Nora wasn’t satisfied with just that. “Well where they’d get lost? The desert? Ah! The moon!”

“I’m not sure,” Ren explained, “and neither are they. They never found anyone to ask. Emerald and Zwei happened to be in the same area for some reason and that’s how they found them. Ruby was using Emerald’s scroll to call me and apparently it will be awhile before their back. They’re moving slow and still have a bit of distance until they’re at a terminal and who knows when there will be a ship.”

“Why are they going slow? Wouldn’t they want to get here faster?” Pyrrha asked.

“All Ruby said was it’s something to do with Weiss. That’s it.”

The room sat in silence after Ren finished speaking. Pyrrha broke it by asking, “Should we let the teachers know that they’ll be late?”

Ren was in the middle of covering himself with blankets as he said, “She said that they will take care of it. Probably who she was going to call right after me.” Without even looking at Pyrrha he knew what her next question was going to be. “She also already sent messages to Yang and Blake. Nothing we can do now but wait for them to return.”

Pyrrha deflated at that. She hated just waiting around.  _ I wish there was something I could do. _ But there was nothing to do so she decided to get a bit of sleep. It had been a tiring day and she figured she should get at least a few hours of sleep. Hopefully their friends would be back by then and if they weren’t, then she could wait up until then. Yes, that’s what she would do.

That was the plan. Nothing else. No deviation. Just getting some sleep.

Yep.

... _ I’m going to be awake the whole night. _

_ … _

_ Great. _

**XXXXX**

A bell jingled as the old heavy door creaked open. The sharply dressed man who entered said nothing as he made his way over to a darkened corner. Sitting in the booth he motioned for the bartender. He needed not to be asked what drink as he was a frequent visitor to this establishment. With that done, he waited for his drink. He didn’t have to wait for too long as his drink promptly arrived, however it wasn’t the hands of the bartender that had brought it. Though the light made it hard to perceive he could still tell who it was. It was the voice you see.

“Not a thing did I have, not a thing did I see, ‘till I called on your love, and your love came to me.” 

The voice that sent a pleasant shiver shooting through his body. _ Tonight's starting to shape up.  _ He took the drink offered from the outstretched arm. “Really? Trying to butter me up now are we?” He could just make out the grin that appeared on their face.

“Won’t you try some? Baby won’t you buy some?”

His eyebrow rose.  _ Really then. _ “Well, if you’re offering.” He took his drink and downed it in one shot. “Let’s talk.”

**XXXXX**

“Are we almost there yet?”

“Emerald, you’re the one taking us there. You would know if we were getting close or not.”

*sigh* “I know, but none of this is looking familiar.”

“...what?”

“Yeah…”

“Are you saying-”

“That we’re lost?”

“Yeah. That.”

*sigh* “Yeah. I think we’re lost.”

“...great.”

“My thoughts exactly.”

“You know I’ve never been lost, then found, then lost again before?”

“I guess that’s something to seem positive about. You now have done something you have never done before.”

“Yeah I’m not sure this is something to be proud of.”

“Maybe.” *sigh* “Ruby, I got a question for you.”

“Yeah?”

“Where’s Weiss?”

“...”

“...”

“Bark!”

“...crap.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Bowie's Reality album.  
> I'm not sure when the next chapter(s) will be. Hopefully, it won't take as long as these four have.  
> "Try Some, Buy Some"


End file.
